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  Valinda shivered at the thought of another encounter.

  He stood and put his hand out to help her rise.

  Valinda looked up into the concern he exuded and accepted. His scarred hand over hers was calloused, large, and warm.

  He said, “I’d like to take a look in the barn before we go, if you don’t mind.”

  “I don’t. I’ve no idea what to do about it now that I have squatters. Someone cut the padlock, which means there’s no way to keep them out until I can obtain a new one.”

  Sable said, “They’ll probably just cut it off again.”

  Val agreed, and she wasn’t happy knowing she no longer had a viable classroom.

  LeVeq asked, “Does the school have a sponsor?”

  “Yes, the Sisters of the Holy Family. This property once belonged to one of the convent’s benefactors.”

  Together they walked back to the barn. He looked around the fouled interior, and said, “If it were in my power, I’d station a few guards here so you could continue to use it and be safe, but with so many other pressing issues in the city, I doubt the Army will see that as an efficient use of personnel.”

  “I know,” she replied, and the reality of that saddened her. She’d had such high hopes. Now she’d have to find a new classroom and start over. “I’ll talk to the Sisters and see if they can find another place.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said, sounding sincere.

  She nodded.

  Sable said, “We should go. Is there anything in here that you need to take with you?”

  “Just this.” Val picked up the crate with the slates and chalk and took one last look around.

  “Come,” he said, eyes now soft. “Let’s get you home.”

  Chapter Three

  Drake did his best to dampen his lingering fury as he drove Miss Lacy home. He wanted to draw and quarter her attackers until they screamed for a mercy he’d not give. There was no need to imagine what would’ve happened had he and Sable not come along. He knew. Glancing over at the teacher as she sat silent on the seat between them, he wished for the power to turn back time and erase the terror he’d seen in her brown eyes when he’d approached. The incident wouldn’t be something she’d easily forget, and he wanted to punish the men for that as well. Yet, she hadn’t gone like a lamb to the slaughter. She’d fought back and that impressed him. The throat wound she’d given Appleton appeared serious enough to warrant medical attention. If Drake had his way, it would fester, rot, and never heal. A gruesome thought for a man raised in the Catholic faith but genuine for one descended from pirates.

  By the time they reached the Treme, the Creole enclave on the edge of the Quarter, it was nearly dusk. In a short while, the New Orleans night would belong to those without shelter, drunken revelers, and the shadowy forces that preyed on both.

  After receiving directions from her, he stopped the wagon in front of the Dumas’s small home.

  “Thank you both again,” she said in a sincere voice and met Drake’s eyes.

  Though Drake knew nothing about her, he realized he very much wanted to. Her accent wasn’t Southern, so where was home? Was she in the city alone? How long had she been there? Detaining her to satisfy his curiosity made no sense though. After the attack, she was probably of no mind to entertain frivolous conversation.

  Sable’s voice broke into his thoughts.

  “Miss Lacy, if you need anything, let us know. The nuns are very familiar with the LeVeq family. In fact, my daughters are enrolled in their school.”

  Drake added, “And I’m a volunteer at one of the Freedmen’s offices. If I can help you find another site, I will.”

  “Thank you,” she replied. “I’ve had an awful time collecting my stipend. I wish we’d met earlier. But under better circumstances.”

  “So do I,” he said quietly, taking her in. Who are you, lovely Valinda? Will you have dinner with me? Instead of him asking the questions aloud, they discussed finding another place to teach. Although funding and building schools was part of the Bureau’s many tasks, places were being burned down as fast as they were established by those intent upon reinstating slavery. “Free space is at a premium.”

  “I know.”

  Because she impressed him as someone who’d want to know the truth, he added, “Now that you have no classroom, you may not qualify for another stipend until you find another.”

  “Then that will present a problem.”

  “Meaning?”

  She explained her problem with Georgine Dumas.

  “No one is going to allow you to end up on the street,” he told her. Reaching into his coat pocket, he withdrew the small tablet of paper he used for his field notes and a pencil. “If you need assistance at any time, these are the addresses of my Freedmen’s office and my brother Archer’s hotel, where we’re headed.” He handed the paper to her. He’d wanted to write down his home address, too, but knew that would be improper.

  She gave him a small smile. “Thank you again. I feel as though I’ve said that a hundred times, but I can’t say it enough.”

  “I’m just glad Sable and I were nearby.”

  Sable climbed down from her seat to the street to allow the teacher to do the same.

  Holding his gaze one last time, Miss Lacy said, “Goodbye.”

  He nodded and watched her walk to the door. Once she was safely inside, his curiosity remained. Would he see her again? Now that he knew where she lived, could he call on her? His mother, the Lovely Julianna, was a patron of the Sisters. Might she know anything about her?

  Sable waved a hand in front of his face. “Drake. We need to go. Rai and my children are waiting. You can think about seeing her again later.”

  Embarrassed, he smiled and set the team in motion.

  They arrived at Archer’s hotel a short while later. Upon entering, they walked through the small dining area and made their way to the back room. The LeVeq family was a large one and the noise of the gathering could be heard as they approached.

  Applause and cheers rang out when Sable made her entrance. Drake chose an empty chair at the end of the elegantly set long table to allow the honoree her moment in the sun. Her husband, Raimond, grabbed her up, and swung her around into a deep, welcoming kiss. The moment he put her down she was swamped by their children: the fifteen-year-old twins, Cullen and Hazel; their younger sister, Blythe; and two-year-old Desiré, who scrambled off her grand-mère’s lap and ran to Sable shrieking, “Mama!” Sable scooped her up and hugged and kissed them all. Famous in the city for her work with orphans, she’d made the trip to Biloxi to escort three of her charges to a new, loving home. Drake, like the rest of the family, was glad she’d returned safely.

  Drake was the third oldest son. Ahead of him were Archer and the eldest, Raimond. Their brother Gerrold, born between Raimond and Archer, lost his life during the war, and his high-spirited presence was sorely missed. Behind Drake in the line of LeVeq sons was Beau, then Phillipe, the youngest.

  “So,” said Phillipe. “Have you figured out a way to kill Lieutenant Merritt, and not be blamed?”

  Drake picked up one of the wine bottles placed atop the white-clothed table and poured a portion into his glass. “No. But I am working on it.”

  They all knew of Drake’s frustration with the man. Their brother Raimond also had ties to the Bureau, but he’d left recently to devote more time to politics, and to the group of Black war veterans known as the Council.

  Beau asked, “What happened to your hand? Did you use it on Merritt, I hope?”

  Drake glanced down at the bruised skin over his knuckles and flexed the slightly swollen fingers. “No.” He then told them what happened.

  Both were outraged.

  Beau said, “Your restraint is admirable, brother. I’d still be kicking their arses. Is the lady okay?”

  “As well as could be expected, I suppose.” His mind floated back to the scratches and scrapes on her smooth brown cheeks and his anger rose again. “I told her I’d report the m
en to their superior officer, but I know him to be as useless as Merritt, so there’s no sense in it. He won’t reprimand them.”

  “Maybe we’ll be lucky enough to come across them again. At night. In an alley.”

  Drake chuckled and excused himself from his bloodthirsty siblings to go and say hello to their mother, Julianna.

  At the Dumas residence, Val stared at Georgine in disbelief. “Madeline passed away this morning?”

  “Yes. An hour or so after you left for the Freedmen’s Bureau. The doctor said her heart gave out. She’s with the undertaker.”

  Val thought back on Madeline’s kindness to her and wished her soul peace.

  “Which means I can now rid my house of you.”

  Val stared. After the terrible day she’d had, this was the last thing she wanted to hear. “I received my stipend, so I have the money you’re owed.”

  “Your things are there by the door.”

  She saw her green embroidered carpetbag and brown leather valise. She was hot, tired, and still reeling from her attack. “Miss Georgine, please,” she begged. “I was attacked less than an hour ago. May I at least stay the night?”

  “Go. I need to grieve.”

  Fighting tears and the urge to shake the old crone until her false teeth rattled, Val picked up her things, left the crate with the chalk and slates behind, and walked back out into the night.

  The convent was a short distance away. Gathering herself, she set out. She’d been warned against being out alone after dark. The streets weren’t safe, and as she now knew, they weren’t safe during daylight hours either, so she set a quick pace. Seeing the dark shape of the convent’s house ahead bolstered her flagging spirits. Reaching the gate, she pulled. It didn’t move. A second pull offered the same result. It was locked.

  “No!” she cried softly.

  Standing under the street lamp, she searched the elaborate ironwork for a bell pull or some other way to alert the nuns that she needed entry but there was nothing. Now what? She toyed with the idea of climbing the fence. She was once the best tree-climbing child in her neighborhood, but unlike trees, the gate had sharp arrowhead finials and she’d undoubtedly puncture her hands using them for balance to drop down to the lawn inside.

  Discouraged and deflated, tears stung her eyes, but she wiped them away and started walking again. She’d only met a few people in the short time she’d been in the city, mainly friends and acquaintances of the Dumas sisters, but she didn’t know any of them well enough to ask for a place for the night, even if she knew where they lived. She thought about her rescuers, the LeVeqs. She didn’t know them well either, but they’d been kind. She hated the idea of having to lean on them twice in one day, but what else could she do? She reached into the pocket of her skirt and withdrew the small piece of paper she’d received from the captain. He said he and Sable were going to his brother’s hotel. The lack of light made deciphering the address another test. Taking a wild guess, she set out, praying she’d find it and that he and his sister-in-law were still there.

  The street was as crowded as if it were noon. Vendors selling spirits plied their goods beneath the light of the street lamps, while girls of the night sold themselves on corners and in the dark doorways of brothels. She stepped around people sleeping on the walks. Saloons blared the music of horns and drums to the delight of the drunks dancing and swaying near the entrances.

  “Hey there, lovely lady!” a man called to her. “Do you want to keep me warm tonight?” Laughter followed from his companions.

  She kept her eyes straight ahead and ignored them as she pressed on. Her shoulders ached from the strain of carrying the heavy carpetbag and valise. Her ribs were sore from the attack. She was tired and felt terribly alone. She wanted to stop someone and ask if they knew of the hotel owned by the captain’s brother, but the attack was still fresh in her mind, and she was too wary. Off in the distance she heard gunshots, more gay music, and the laughter of New Orleans revelers. She kept walking.

  Her hope failing, she came upon an old woman of color seated behind a table. Her position beneath a street lamp allowed Val to see her thin, aging, nut-brown face, and the colorful red tignon covering her hair.

  “Want your fortune told, miss?” the woman asked.

  “No, ma’am, but can you tell me if I’m near this address?” Val handed her the paper.

  The woman took the paper, eyed it, and handed it back. As Val reached out to take it, the woman gently took her hand, picked up a small lamp beside her, and studied Val’s open palm under the flickering light. “You will lose a love, reject a love, find a love.”

  Val didn’t put much stock in the predictions of fortune-tellers. “Thank you. But the address?”

  The fortune-teller smiled. “It’s there,” she said, and she pointed. “Right across the street.”

  Relief filled her. “Thank you.”

  “Dare to love him, miss.”

  “Who?”

  “Him,” came the reply, as if it were a silly question.

  Skeptical, Val offered a respectful, “Thank you again,” and crossed the street. Behind her, she heard the old woman laughing softly.

  Grateful to find the hotel’s door unlocked, Val stepped inside. There were a few white-clothed tables spread out across the small dining room. The people seated at them glanced up from their meals at her entrance, and the way they stared made her conscious of her wrinkled, disheveled appearance.

  A man in a crisp black suit stepped to her and said, “I’m sorry, miss. We’re about to close the kitchen, so I can’t seat you.”

  “I’m here to speak to Captain LeVeq, if I may.”

  The man took in her shoddy appearance and the bags she carried. Disapproval lined his dark face. “I’m sorry. The captain is attending a private family gathering, and they’ve asked not to be disturbed.”

  “I just left him and his sister-in-law, Sable. They told me if I needed assistance, to come here.”

  He forced a smile. “I’m sure they did, but they’re unavailable.”

  She fished the paper from the pocket of her skirt. “He wrote this for me.”

  He gave the note a cursory glance. “I’m going to ask you to leave before I call the authorities.”

  “You believe I’m a liar?”

  Another forced smile. “Leave, please.”

  His condescending attitude coupled with her awful day, and the prospect of spending the night on the street, forced her to grit out, “Either take me to him or I will shout this place down!”

  He opened his mouth to respond, but she was quicker. “Captain LeVeq!” she called out in a loud voice.

  Diners jumped with surprise, and a buzz filled the room.

  She yelled again, louder, “Captain LeVeq!”

  “Miss!” Black Suit snapped, staring around at the unsettled guests. “Keep your voice down!”

  “Captain LeVeq!”

  A blink later, LeVeq appeared at the edge of the dining room. Confusion filled his eyes and voice. “Miss Lacy?”

  “Hello,” she said with relief. “He wouldn’t take me to you.”

  Black Suit said, “I’m sorry, Drake, but—”

  LeVeq held up a hand that stopped him in mid-speech. “It’s okay, Raoul.”

  Val had been so focused on the captain and the relief his presence generated, only then did she notice the other concerned-looking people he was surrounded by. Most were men, but she spied Sable holding a little girl. Beside Sable stood three other children. An emotion-filled Val gathered herself and whispered, “I’m so sorry for interrupting you, but Georgine Dumas threw me out, and I’ve no place to go.”

  A beautiful, older, ebony-skinned woman stepped out from behind the men. “Drake, do you know this young woman?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “Then have her join us.”

  Val shook her head. “No, please. Can you just tell me where I can get a place to sleep for the night? I don’t want to disturb your party.”

  The wo
man asked Drake, “Is she always this stubborn?”

  Appearing amused, he replied, “I don’t know, Mama. I only met her today.”

  His mother smiled her way, and Val saw that Drake had her dark eyes. “Have you had dinner?” the older woman asked.

  “No, ma’am.”

  “Are you hungry?”

  Val couldn’t lie. “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Then, come, eat. After that, we’ll get you a place to lay your head. I promise.”

  Val glanced around at all the people awaiting her response. She looked to Drake last.

  “She likes stubborn women,” he told her.

  Amusement cut through her weariness. “Okay. I accept.”

  The family applauded.

  Chapter Four

  Drake couldn’t believe how happy he was to see Valinda Lacy again, but it was a happiness coupled with concern. She’d had an awful day. First the attack, and then being cruelly served by her landlady—he wanted to take her home and dare anyone to hurt her again. Instead he stood off to the side and let his mother and Sable fuss over her and show her to the buffet. As he sipped from his wineglass, his eldest brother, Raimond, drifted over. “Tell me her story.”

  Eyes never leaving her, Drake related the details of the attack.

  Raimond’s face clouded with anger. “Glad you were there. So many women have no champions when facing such violence—especially women of the race.”

  “I wouldn’t call myself a champion.”

  “What would you call yourself?”

  “Just someone who helped.”

  “Uh huh. Is that why you’re looking at her as if she’s the only person in the room?”

  Drake did his best not to show his embarrassment.

  Raimond said, “It’s okay. I acted the same way the first time I met Sable. Thought I’d lose my mind when she was taken.”

  A few years ago, Sable, along with their three adopted children, was stolen away by her former master. Seeing Raimond’s pain when they couldn’t be found was something Drake would never forget.